His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. By these He has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them you may share in the divine nature, escaping the corruption that is in the world because of evil desires. 2 Peter 1:3-4 HCSB
This scripture passage tells us that God makes very great and precious promises to those of us who believe. Verses 5-8 lists the qualities that we, as Christians, should possess including faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, endurance, godliness, brotherly affection and brotherly love. Verse 8 tells us that by possessing these qualities it will keep us from being useless and unfruitful in God’s kingdom. Verse 9 tells us that the one that does not possess these qualities is blind and short-sighted forgetting their cleansing from past sins.
God does make some glorious promises to us in His Holy Word. But, it is important that we do not take these promises out of context. These promises are made through God’s covenant with us. Covenant is defined as an agreement or in business it may be called a contract. God promises certain things to us, His children. He very specifically instructs us through His Word on what He expects us to do. We agree to do our part and He promises to do His part.
Romans 8:28 is a prime example of this. It tells us that all things (even trials and tribulations) work for the good of those who love the Lord and are called according to His purpose. It doesn’t say all things work for the good of everyone. It specifically states that in order for us to claim this promise, we must do our part in loving the Lord and doing the work He has called us to do.
Jeremiah 29:11 is a beautiful verse that promises that God has good plans for us, it says, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” God was promising this to His people who had been taken captive by the Babylonians (a pagan people). Because of their repeated and deliberate sin, God had allowed them to be taken captive. He is telling them here to settle into the land where He has placed them. He promises to restore them after 70 years.
Psalm 91 is a beautiful Psalm of protection. Verse one tells us that whoever chooses to come into God’s shelter by faith will live under His protective shadow. It promises protection to those that believe in Him and trust in Him. This protection is promised for those who live in close fellowship with Him and do their best to obey His commands.
Verse 9 tells us that because we choose to live in God’s protective shelter, no harm will come to us.
Verses 11-12, “For He will give His angels orders concerning you, to protect you in all your ways. They will support you with their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” God doesn’t promise us a guardian angel, He promises us angels (plural) will guard us. He will commission His heavenly staff of angels to watch over us in all that we do.
God keeps His promises, but He also expects us to do our part through faith and obedience. When we sin, we separate ourselves from God (Isaiah 59:2). In Deuteronomy 31:8 Moses is preparing Joshua to lead the Israelites into the Promised Land. He tells him, “The Lord is the One who will go before you. He will be with you; He will not leave you or forsake you. Do not be afraid or discouraged.” God promises to be with us, but we must choose to remain with Him.
God wants to take good care of you, but He will not tolerate disobedience. When we sin and disobey the commands in God’s Holy Word, it’s as if we walk away from God. James 4:8 tells us that if we draw near to God, He will draw near to us. We have a choice to make.
We can draw near to God and trust in Him and obey Him and receive His very great and precious promises. Or, we can choose to live a life of habitual, deliberate, unrepentant sin making our contract null and void. We have a choice to make. I pray that you choose wisely.
Have a great day!